A woman is overcome with grief Tuesday outside the Cereso prison in Ju&#225;rez as she and others read a list of those killed Monday night during a riot there. Officials posted names of the 17 killed during the melee on the prison's front gate.

JUAREZ -- Two different battles took place on a chaotic Monday evening at Juárez's Cereso municipal prison.

Inside the prison, city officials said a bloody armed fight between rival gangs that was initially reported as a breakout attempt resulted in the deaths of 17 inmates -- including two U.S. citizens -- and seriously injured two others.

Outside, municipal police chief Julián Leyzaola accused federal police officers of intentionally opening fire on his vehicle when he arrived at the scene.

Among those killed were two inmates whom Juárez city officials identified as U.S. citizens. Luis Adrian Estrada Pérez, 28, was being held under kidnapping charges, and Nicolas Frias Salas, 35, had been charged with homicide and possession of illegal weapons.

The U.S Consulate could not be reached to confirm that the men were U.S. citizens.

The chaos that gripped the prison late Monday night turned into sadness, grief and despair by Tuesday morning when relatives of inmates learned about the deadly events. People were seen crying, praying and falling to the ground in agony.

Relatives of inmates huddled outside the prison's entrance and looked at a list of names to see who had been killed in the mayhem.

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Though it was visitation day, relatives were not allowed to go inside.

After order had been restored inside the prison, an uneasiness remained outside the gates Tuesday.

"The uncertainty is what's killing us," a woman told a prison guard at Cereso's gates.

The prison violence was the first major incident inside Cereso since the beginning of the city's current administration, while the attack on Leyzaola was the third major instance of friction between the federal police and city officials this year.

The fight began around 9 p.m. when three armed inmates took over an area of the prison reserved for prisoners who have not yet been sentenced. A city spokesman said the attackers were targeting 13 individuals who had recently arrived at Cereso and who were among the dead.

It was unclear how the attackers gained access to the area, which otherwise would be restricted.

Federal police officers entered Cereso to regain control, but the municipal police and the Mexican army also responded, closing off the streets outside the prison.

A city news release said authorities contained the fight within 40 minutes after it started and calmed the rest of the inmates by 2 a.m.

According to a federal police news release, a woman who was not authorized to be inside Cereso was among those killed. In addition, a 15-year-old boy was found inside the prison without authorization, the release said.

More than 70 inmates received non-life-threatening injuries during the violence, according to federal police.

Juárez City Manager Héctor Arcelús Pérez said authorities seized two rifles and a handgun at the scene.

Neighbors living across the street from Cereso said they heard nonstop shooting for almost two hours.

"When the shooting started, we hid under the table and we didn't move," said a neighbor who lives in front of the prison and asked not to be identified. "The shooting didn't stop even for a minute. We've lived here before the Cereso was built but there has never been an incident like the one (Monday)."

Lorenzo Arena, 40, went to the prison with his wife to check on his son, Jesus Alejandro Reyes, 19.

"We hope that God will want him to be safe and complete," he said. "He is already paying his dues to society. He also has the right to live in peace."

As of early afternoon, about 100 relatives of prisoners had gathered and waited for updates on those injured.

A woman spoke to a guard at the entrance of the prison, telling him, "The only thing I want to know is how my brother is. Just tell me that."

The woman had heard that her brother had been wounded in the fracas but did know how serious his injuries were.

While relatives grieved and worried outside the prison Tuesday, Chief Leyzaola at a government office offered details about his encounter with federal agents.

He said he arrived at the scene after attending a report of an attack on a police officer in the downtown.

The visibly upset Leyzaola told journalists that federal police officers opened fire on his vehicle when he arrived at the scene.

"I was looking at the (prison's) buildings when I heard a burst of fire shot in my direction," he said. "When I turned completely there was a group of 10 to 15 (federal police officers) in the ground shooting at me. Fortunately, the vehicle was bulletproof."

Leyzaola said he did not return fire and, once the shooting stopped, stepped out of his vehicle and confronted the agents. Leyzaola said they did not offer any immediate explanation.

A spokesman for the federal public security secretariat, which oversees the federal police, said the agency did not have an official response to the incident.

According to the federal police news release, federal police officers fired at Leyzaola because he rushed through a checkpoint without stopping.

Arcelús Pérez said the shooting was "a clear attack" against Leyzaola and accused the federal police of intentionally opening fire against him.

Federal police officers "know what vehicle he drives and who escorts him," he said. "The federal police acted out of ill will, and this has been the constant behavior it has had against the municipality of Juárez."

Arcelús Pérez said that authorities have identified 20 federal police officers as participating in the shooting and that the city government will file a complaint for attempted homicide before Mexico's general attorney's office.

A city government official said the Cereso fight was begun by members of the Artistas Asesinos gang who targeted members of rival Mexicles and Aztecas prison gangs.

City spokesman Manuel del Castillo said the state prosecutor's office has begun a corruption investigation that involves the prison director and several guards.

"For this to happen, there had to be corruption," he said. "Where else would those weapons come from?"

Alejandro Martínez-Cabrera can be reached at a.martinez@elpasotimes.com; 546-6129.